The efficient storage, search, and retrieval of information has long been a problem. From filing cabinets full of paper to hard-drives full of data, individuals, businesses, and governments have struggled to find good organization techniques. The advent of databases and enhanced search and indexing algorithms has made it easier to find desired electronic data. For example, Liu et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2005/0114325, published May 26, 2005, and Liu, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2005/0010553, published Jan. 13, 2005, disclose a semi-automatic means for annotating multimedia objects which also permits retrieval of the multimedia objects. The annotation process annotates multimedia objects, such as digital images, with semantically relevant keywords. Such annotation is performed in the background, with the results presented to the user for verification. The user can also add his or her own keywords or other annotation information. Similarly, Remsen et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0167283, published Sep. 4, 2003, discloses a system for managing taxonomic information regarding biological organisms that allows researchers to quickly retrieve information on a given organism regardless of the name associated with the information.
While such systems can be advantageous where the information to be cataloged is mostly text or includes textual metadata, searching a set of multimedia objects, such as images, sounds, or video, for a particular item of interest can be difficult. Stubler et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,804,684, issued Oct. 12, 2004, discloses a method for associating semantic information with multiple images in an image database environment. Stubler discloses generating captions or semantic labels for an acquired imaged based upon similarities between the acquired image and one or more stored images, where the stored images have preexisting captions or labels. Similarly, DeBonet, U.S. Pat. No. 5,819,288, issued Oct. 6, 1998, discloses a statistically based image group descriptor for use in an image classification and retrieval system. DeBonet discloses an apparatus and method for generating a semantically based, linguistically searchable, numeric descriptor of a pre-defined group of input images which can automatically classify individual images to allow for rapid identification of similar images.
The systems described above facilitate searching by annotating a database entry with a keyword. Where the data may be organized by a plurality of key words, or where the data may not have appropriate key words, database searches may not return the entire set of available information, and thus valuable information may be effectively inaccessible when needed. Matsuzaki et al., U.S. Pat. No. 6,804,683, issued Oct. 12, 2004, attempts to overcome those deficiencies by disclosing a means for retrieving similar images that allows a user to specify a “region of interest”, and compares a “feature quantity calculation” of the region to the quantity calculation of other images in the database. The search results are presented in order of decreasing similarity from the image database.
It can clearly be difficult to find appropriate data in a database, and the techniques described above have been developed to improve search results. Once the search results are obtained, the next concern is the presentation of these search results. Baker, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2002/0047856, published Apr. 25, 2002, discloses a method of providing access to a collection of images through a single web page, which Baker refers to as “stacked images.” Baker discloses building a database that represents a plurality of separate images, and then displaying at least one of these images. When a user clicks the image, the next image in the “stack” is displayed. Lennon et al., U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2003/0018607, published Jan. 23, 2003, discloses a system for allowing a user to search different metadata collections over the Internet. Lennon discloses dynamic generation of an XML description of an associated metadata collection that reflects a structure by which the associated metadata collection may be browsed. This structure includes XML schema definitions of types for Categories, Subcategories, Classes, and Images. Lennon discloses that each declared descriptor within the defined type inherits a visualIdentifier attribute which is used by a media browser to provide visual representation of the content of the item. For example, if the item is an image then the visualIdentifier attribute value will typically contain a URI of a thumbnail of the image; if the item is a Category, Subcategory, or Class, then the URI may point to an icon. If the attribute is not present, the media browser generates a visual identifier for the item from a provided textIdentifier attribute value or from the name of the element.
While several different techniques exist for the search, retrieval, and presentation of information, most are too cumbersome to be useful in instances where time is of the essence, or where it is critical that the all relevant information be presented without overwhelming the user. For example, Remsen's system is intentionally over inclusive, and provides information about related species in addition to the species for which the user is searching. Similarly, Stubler's and DeBonet's search techniques are likely to both include information that is not relevant, and to overlook relevant images.